Sep. 9, 2013

Written by

Jon Spencer

News Journal

OSU By The Numbers

• 0: Catches by Chris Fields vs. SDSU after scoring two TDs in the opener. • 0: Points allowed SDSU in the first half, the first time the Aztecs were blanked at halftime in 23 games. • 3: More plays run by the Buckeyes than their first two opponents despite 55-point disparity. • 3: Consecutive road wins by SDSU before Saturday. • 6: Three-and-outs forced by the defense Saturday. • 7: Team-high tackles by safety C.J. Barnett on Saturday, after he missed the opener. • 8: Wins in nine games against the Mountain West Conference, including 4-0 vs. SDSU. • 14: Consecutive wins by the Buckeyes, longest streak in the nation. • 44: Yards on TD run by Kenny Guiton vs. SDSU, his career longest rush. • 44: Points scored by the Buckeyes in the first quarter of their first two games. • 63: Consecutive wins at home against unranked, regular-season, non-conference foes. • 152: Career-high passing yardage total for Kenny Guiton vs. SDSU. • 255: Total offense yardage amassed by Kenny Guiton (including 83 rushing) vs. SDSU.

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We’ll rarely catch more than a glimpse of running back Dontre Wilson, he’s that much of a blur.

But when does Ohio State’s flashy freshman become less of a bit player and more of a showstopper? Inquiring, impatient minds want to know.

“Oregon wouldn’t waste him like this,” harrumphed a writer seated next to me in the press box Saturday after Wilson had only three touches in a 35-0 first half that turned into a 42-7 rout of San Diego State.

The Ducks nearly had him. Wilson was committed to Nike U. until coach Chip Kelly took his streaking-in-space age offense to the NFL.

So now No. 1 is part of Urban Meyer’s stable. And he’s bringing Wilson along slowly — (keep in mind that slowly and Wilson will rarely appear in the same sentence) — probably because he’s a rookie at a position where the Buckeyes are loaded with depth and maybe, for safety’s sake, because he’s generously listed at 174 pounds.

Jetting toward the wild blue yonder before he had secured the ball resulted in a fumble in the opener against Buffalo. He was one more “oops” away from being leashed by Meyer and thrown in the same doghouse where Brionte Dunn — remember him? — seems to reside.

I’m worried less about Wilson being under-utilized and wondering more about the futures of Dunn and Warren Ball as Ohio State tailbacks. Despite being in only their second year with the program they’ve already fallen behind Rod Smith, Wilson, freshman Ezekiel Elliott and, presumably when he returns from suspension, 2012 starting tailback Carlos Hyde.

That “meep, meep” you hear is Wilson whizzing past Dunn and Ball on the depth chart, ready for whatever the Badgers, Wildcats, Wolverines or Wile E. Coyote have in store down the road.

He took an option pitch in the first quarter from relief ace Kenny Guiton and made that seven-yard touchdown run look ridiculously easy. It was part of the game’s pivotal sequence, coming one play after starting quarterback Braxton Miller’s head was separated from his helmet and his MCL nearly torn from his left knee on a tackle that ended Miller’s day.

If Ohio State had settled for a field goal there on its first series of the game, it might have been a double downer that could have energized the Aztecs.

Instead, the Buckeyes trampled those possibilities with their own version of the Texas Two Step — performed with aplomb by Guiton, the fifth-year senior from Houston, and Wilson, who has blown into central Ohio like a twister from the Dallas suburb of DeSoto.

“(Guiton) said ‘Don’t be nervous, man,’” Wilson said. “He really protects me because he’s a senior. He’s like a mentor to me. Kenny’s one of the greatest quarterbacks in college football right now.”

That’s a freshman overstating things a bit and another indication that it’s going to take time for him to figure things out at this level.

Wilson’s nine touches Saturday were nearly double the five he had in the opener, so that’s an encouraging sign. A threat to go all the way every time he handles the ball, it’s not hard to envision Wilson eventually (next year?) sliding into the hybrid role designated for starting tailback Jordan Hall when Hyde returns.

It frustrates some that the coaching staff is so enamored with Hall. After a career day against Buffalo, he looked Saturday like the scatback we’ve seen for the better part of the last five years. Take away a 25-yard gain and he had 50 yards on other 12 carries. He’s more serviceable than spectacular.

Wilson could be spectacular. We’ve already seen it. His first kickoff return as a Buckeye went 51 yards. Four of his five carries Saturday went for 7, 8, 17 and 18 yards. He was a shoestring tackle in the opener from taking a little swing pass and turning it into a home run.

“I have to spend a little more time in the weight room,” Wilson said, “so I can break arm tackles and get in the end zone.”

We need to trust that Meyer and offensive coordinator Tom Herman have big plans for Wilson. Every day is like the Fourth of July in their heads. They have reputations for running up-tempo, innovative attacks. We saw it with the pair of two-point conversions against Buffalo and again against SDSU with the “quad” formation to the right setting up Guiton’s easy 44-yard TD jaunt to the left.

There’s no chance of this being 2004 revisited, when it seemed to take Jim Tressel half the season to figure out how to utilize freshman Ted Ginn Jr. By then it was too late. After a 3-3 start, the Buckeyes won five of their last six games, even featuring the “shot-Ginn” formation in a 33-7 victory over Les Miles and Oklahoma State in the Alamo Bowl. Ginn was named MVP.

There might be MVPs in Wilson’s future, too. It’s hard to disagree with those who want his future to be now.

“I would like to touch the ball as much as I can because once I take the ball I get going in spurts and make a couple of plays here and a couple of plays there,” Wilson said. “But it’s really up to the coaches.”

Wilson said he wasn’t saving his first TD for last Saturday, with his father and step-mother watching him as a collegian for the first time. But he’s glad it worked out that way.

“Seeing all the parents here (for the opener) made me sad,,” he said, “but my parents being here this week gave my confidence a boost.”